Solid fats/shortenings are produced as substitutes for solid animal fats, especially lard. In North America, cottonseed oil was converted to shortening to replace lard in the 1890s. Soyabean oil did not become a major ingredient in shortening until the late 1930s. Now, partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil and soyabean oil have been used to produce shortenings in the USA with domestic consumption in 2004 of around 3.85 million tonnes. However, the partially hydrogenated shortenings contain transfatty acids (up to 43%) and palm-based shortenings are advantageous in being trans-free. Solid fats/shortenings can be tailor-made for particular applications. The most common is multipurpose solid cooking fat for frying. The solid cooking fat/shortening is also used in cakes, biscuits, cream fi llings, pastries and bread. Frying is widely used by both the food industry and household consumers. Fats and oils have unique properties that add to the fl avour and mouthfeel of food, contributing to its palatability. Although palm olein is generally regarded as a superior frying medium, some fast food restaurants in Vietnam and Cambodia prefer a solid fat, especially lard. The selection of frying medium is influenced by a number of factors, including the product to be fried, type of fryer, shelf-life requirement, flavour and eating characteristics of the product.

Main Research: Dr. Muhamad Nor Omar